This Resort In The Bahamas Was Created Especially For Plus-Size Travelers

"Being able to feel 'normal,' even for a little while, was beyond a gift."

Warm weather holidays are a time for rest and relaxation. But for some, the anxiety of wearing a swimsuit in public, or the fear that they will be fat-shamed when they hit up the breakfast buffet, can ruin a vacation.

Enter The Resort, the first all-inclusive hotel that caters specifically to overweight and obese people. Entrepreneur James King founded the luxury property, located on Eleuthera/Harbour Island in the Bahamas.

“I Decided I Had To Do Something”

The businessman told People that he came up with the idea many years ago when he noticed full-figured people running into awkward and even humiliating situations at other hotels.

“On my first day working at a resort in Grenada, a young woman sat down in one of the loungers, and she went right through it, and everybody on the beach was laughing,” he said. “The next day I was in my office, and I hear screaming and yelling, and she was having a fit because the owner’s policy was that she was charged $150 for destruction of hotel property. And I thought that it was insane… I tried to convince the owners that we needed furniture other than this plastic flimsy stuff, and they didn’t care. I decided that I had to do something.”

At The Resort, King makes sure that these types of problems don’t exist, thanks to reinforced furniture (beds included) and extra-wide doors. The sun loungers, made from strong wood, can hold up to 560 pounds.

Here are some more special features at The Resort:

Guests Are Able To Feel Like Themselves

“Being able to feel ‘normal,’ even for a little while, was beyond a gift,” one guest, a 375-pound woman from Texas, told the New York Post. “Can you imagine how it feels to walk down a beach and hear people refer to you as a beached whale?”

At The Resort, she donned a swimsuit without fear.

“I wore a bikini, and never felt uncomfortable, and I was noticed for my beauty, not my size,” she said. “Living as a plus-size person in a judgmental world is stressful.”

The Resort is a luxury destination with five miles of private sand and three buffet meals a day. However, it comes at a hefty cost. The property only takes group reservations for up to 24 people. If you can round up 23 of your BFFs to join you, a six-day stay comes out to be $684 a person (or $16,400 total).

Apparently, The Resort has been successful enough that the company wants to expand to a second location.

It’s great to see that this resort is helping people feel comfortable in their own skin — no matter their size. No one should ever be made to feel bad about themselves, and especially not on vacation.